Ants In My Pantry And On My Kitchen Cabinets and Counters... - Ask Extension
Hello! I have these ants in my pantry now for the second time. I first had them in the pantry in October-November and cleaned out the entire pantry!...
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Ants In My Pantry And On My Kitchen Cabinets and Counters... #455211
Asked May 19, 2018, 3:02 PM EDT
Hello! I have these ants in my pantry now for the second time. I first had them in the pantry in October-November and cleaned out the entire pantry!!! Top to bottom and every crevice!! Now, in April-May, these ants are now crawling all over my kitchen cabinets and counters and I have cleaned them well! And they have been climbing on the kitchen wall, stove and window sill. I have been able to get rid of most and now they are BACK in my pantry!!
Can you please help me identify what type of ant this is? And, can you please tell me what type of treatment I may use to get rid of them once and for all?? And the sooner the better, please.
We have lived in our house for 6 years now and this is the fist time we have had this type of problem! We also had similar ants crawling at the front door, but we were able to rid of those with a spray we've used several times before for ants, spiders and other insects.
Thank you for your expedited response! Have a great day!
Note: Today is Saturday, May 19, 2018
Charles County Maryland
Expert Response
Good Morning!
That sounds frustrating! Unfortunately, this time of year it is not uncommon to have ants in and around the house. Cleaning your pantry like you have done is a very important step, but you can still have ants coming in looking (hopefully unsuccessfully) for food and shelter. Rather than spraying an insecticide, the best control method is typically to use a trap with an ant bait that contains an insecticide. There are many different types commonly available locally and online that are effective. See the link below for more information. As with any pesticide, be sure to read and follow all label instructions.
https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/ants
That sounds frustrating! Unfortunately, this time of year it is not uncommon to have ants in and around the house. Cleaning your pantry like you have done is a very important step, but you can still have ants coming in looking (hopefully unsuccessfully) for food and shelter. Rather than spraying an insecticide, the best control method is typically to use a trap with an ant bait that contains an insecticide. There are many different types commonly available locally and online that are effective. See the link below for more information. As with any pesticide, be sure to read and follow all label instructions.
https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/ants
